THE Panama Canal is one of the busiest waterways in the maritime world which sees high volumes of ship traffic every day and provides international shipping services of up to six per cent of world commerce.

Dean of the Faculty of Marine and Nautical Studies at the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU), Captain Devron Newman, told the

Jamaica Observer at a recent Business Forum that the expansion of the canal has created a need for more professionals that are required to provide support to the ecosystem related to logistics.

The creation of the canal has also resulted in port expansion in Freeport, The Bahamas; Mariel, Cuba; Kingston, Jamaica; and Caucedo, in the Dominican Republic.

“With an increase in international maritime commerce, trade liberalisation with increased trading volumes and containerisation, shipping lines have become more inclined to investing more funds in ships and ports to meet the needs and demand growth,” Newman outlined.

The canal has given rise to increased freight movements throughout the Americas, causing the formation of logistics hubs, special economic zones, new transportation routes and distribution patterns.

The pressure placed on the canal has resulted in some bottlenecks. Due to its capacity, the Panama Canal had been facing several problems related to ship traffic congestion; outdated canal structure; lagging in maritime industry trends for the world’s commerce and lack in growth of transit demands.

Consequently, Captain Newman said, it had been losing market share to other trade routes like the Suez Canal.

Panama Canal is not capable of accommodating vessels of capacity greater than 5,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs).The expansion commenced in 2007 and was completed in 2016 and the changes resulted in the following increases: Vessel length: 304 metres to 366 metres; beam: 32 metres to 49 metres; TEUs: 5,000 TEUs to 13,000; bulk cargo capacity: 62,000 tonnes to 140,000 tonnes; and annual tonnage capacity: 275 million tonnes to 600 million tonnes.

Despite the drawbacks, the dean says, benefits arising from the canal’s creation include a reduced number of shipping bottlenecks; an increased number of daily transits, and faster transit times.

The canal has also made an enhanced environmental contribution by reducing green house gas emissions with more efficient transport reducing fuel consumption per cargo unit.

Arising from the expansion of the canal, there has been an increase in the demand for marine piloting as more ships in the Caribbean region would require more pilots.

There is also a greater need for ship repair technicians to repair damaged structures on board; electro-technical officers to troubleshoot and address electronics-related issues; and marine terminal operators as larger ships require more personnel.

The canal and its connected activity has also resulted in increased demand for stevedores and logisticians as increased cargo throughput needs more planners.

Also in demand are more cargo brokers, freight forwarders, welders for repair of damaged structures and fittings. With more and larger ships there is also a need for bunkering or fuel supply.

The canal has also placed a demand on tug boat operators, ship agency operations and customs.

Captain Newman told the

Business Observer, “The potential for employment in the maritime ecosystem has created an increase in enrolment to logistics and supply chain management; port management and international shipping; marine engineering and marine transportation degree programmes.”

With an estimated annual growth of container cargo commerce of 8.4 per cent, the Panama Canal expansion is continuing to contribute to increased economic activity in the region.